Thursday, March 13, 2008

Declining US$$$$, Deminishing Returns

When I first started in microstock in late, US$1.00 was worth around S$1.70. Today, 13 March 2008, US$1.00 is only worth S$1.3802. It is a 20% decline over the 2 years. Luckily many stock sites also up'ed their rates for photographers. Shutterstock, for example, first increased their payout rate from US$0.20 a download, to US$0.25, then further increased the payout rate to US$0.30 for those who had an accumulated amount of US$500.00 or above. Recently, Shutterstock again announced they are reviewing their payout rate, crutching the numbers before they make an official announcement in early May. Many are hoping to get some really good payouts in May. Let's see what the new rate will be.

The recent devaluation of the US dollar makes it much less attractive for photographers living in non-US dollar countries. By the time they receive their pay from microstock, the amount is no longer worth that much. In addition to that, they still have to bear the cost of exchanging the dollars into their own currencies, which is additional cost.

For someone like me, doing microstock as a sideline, or microstock as a side-product of my hobby, probably it will not matter that much, but for those who make a living out of microstock, the impact is significant. If you maintain the same sales volume, you are already getting a 20% pay cut.

Mmmh, we all must work harder, to make up for the loss of income. Thanks to Mr Ben from the Federal Reserve of USA. :(

2 comments:

  1. The falling US dollar is hurting me too. I live in Argentina, but I'm Australian and all my money goes through the Australian dollar. The Argentine peso is falling against the US dollar, but the Australian dollar is rising against it! I'm not on the right side of the exchange at either end!

    Still, I'm lucky enough to be able to offset that with a little arbitrage, so I'm somewhat sheltered.

    I write about microstock, and (obviously) do a lot of traveling too. We have a bit in common! I've just subscribed to your blog. Keep the posts coming.

    -Lee

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  2. Thanks for your support, Lee! It is always a joy to get to know some like-minded people.

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